GENEVA, N.Y.—Hobart College sophomore goalie Sam Lucchesi made a career-high 18 saves, but visiting Saint Joseph's University eked out a 6-5 win over the Statesmen on Boswell Field today.
 
The game was dominated by defense with Lucchesi, making several saves on point-blank shots. At the other end of the field, the Hawks' first-year Mike Adler logged 15 saves.
 
SJU senior Chris Blewitt led all scorers with three goals and an assist. Senior Will McNamara and senior Mike Rastivo each contributed two points.
 
Hobart got three points, all assists, from junior Chris Aslanian. Senior Mason Burr and sophomore Eric Holden each scored twice. Junior Matthew Pedicine won 9-of-14 faceoffs and collected a game-high five ground balls.
 
The Hawks (4-3, 1-0) got on the board first with McNamara finishing a feed from Rastivo just over two minutes into the game. The Statesmen (3-5, 1-1) appeared to pull even a few minutes later, but the goal was waived off on a crease violation. Hobart hit the back of the net again with 5:20 remaining in the first quarter and this time it counted. Aslanian set up Holden to tie the game. SJU took a 2-1 lead into the second quarter when Blewitt set up Davis Stoner's goal.
 
There was no scoring in the second quarter as Adler made eight saves and Lucchesi turned away four.
 
The Statesmen took their only lead of the game with two goals to start the second half. Holden pulled into a tie for the team scoring lead, netting his 17th of the year just 29 seconds into the half. Five minutes later, Burr scored unassisted to put Hobart in front 3-2.
 
Blewitt put the Hawks back in front with back-to-back goals. The first came just seven seconds after Burr's strike. Billy Jardeleza won the faceoff and set up Blewitt, evening the scoring at 3. Six minutes later, he scored unassisted for a 4-3 lead.
 
Hobart knotted the score once again with 3:24 remaining, this time Aslanian set up first-year Ryan Archer's 12th goal of the season with 11 seconds left in the third. SJU won the ensuing faceoff on McNamara's ground ball pick up and he fed sophomore defenseman Liam Hare 15-yards in front of the goal. His first goal of the season barely beat the buzzer for a 5-4 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
 
About two minutes into the final frame, Blewitt completed his hat trick off an assist from Rastivo. The Statesmen cut their deficit in half with about nine minutes left. Burr took a pass from Aslanian and unleashed a blistering submarine shot to make it a 6-5 game.
 
Hobart was only able to put two shots on frame down the stretch and Adler saved both. The Statesmen played the final 22 seconds with the extra man, but lost the ball with five seconds left, sealing their fate.
 
Hobart had a narrow 34-33 edge in shots and a 20-19 edge in ground balls. The Statesmen were 0-for-1 in extra-man opportunities while the Hawks were 0-for-2.
 
Hobart has a quick turnaround for its next game, a road trip to Canisius. Faceoff at the Demske Sports Complex in Buffalo is set for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 27.